Blacksun Week
by CarlottaStudios - MOVED TO AO3
Summary: My written entries for 2018's Blacksun Week (with some hints of other ships too)! (my entries for days 2 and 7 are images not available here)
1. Day 1: Sunrise

It was early morning when Sun Wukong stirred. Sleep was making its departure, and he yawned and stretched, the movement accompanied by the rustle of blanket and sheets. Beside him, Blake Belladonna, who'd drifted into a lighter sleep a while ago, seemed to hear him, as her highly-attuned faunus ears twitched and she blinked open her eyes. She lifted her head from the pillow and turned to Sun, who was rubbing the slumber from his eyes.

"Hey," she smiled.

Upon hearing her voice, Sun lowered his hands so she could see his brilliant blue orbs. He grinned at her.

"Hey," he whispered, his voice slightly rusty from sleep. "I didn't wake you did I?"

"It's okay." she assured him, moving over to him and kissing him lightly. "I think I was waking up anyway."

He smiled.

"Speaking of waking up," he lifted his head, blinking to adjust his eyes to the dimness of the room, "what time is it? It's dark in here."

Blake looked over shoulder to the clock on the wall. She had to squint a bit to see its hands, but after only a brief moment, her bright night-seeing eyes were able to determine their position.

"It's 6 in the morning." she lay back down, burying her face against the pillow. "We don't have to get up yet."

But Sun wasn't at all in the same mindset as her.

"6? So, the sun's not up yet?!" he asked, his voice excited and very much awake.

'Actually, I think he is.' Blake thought, and then she chuckled at her own joke.

There was no way she'd tell Sun about it though, so she just said:

"No, but it's okay. We can just doze for a bit. If we're lucky, maybe we'll fall asleep again."

She was about to snuggle closer to the monkey faunus, but he was already moving to get out of bed. She sat up groggily, frowning in confusion as her partner found his underwear and pulled it on.

"What are you doing?" she watched him duck down to search the floor for his pants.

He poked his head up, his bright eyes alight.

"I got a better idea."

"Better idea then more sleeping?" she deadpanned.

"Way better." having located his pants, he sat once more on the bed to put them on. "We can watch the sunrise!"

Blake blinked at him.

"Watch the sunrise?" she asked dubiously.

"Sure!"

He sounded quite serious about what he was suggesting.

"But the trees and houses are kind of blocking the horizon." she pointed a thumb at the obstacles in question.

But Sun was completely unfazed by the potential problem.

"Then we can go down to the beach! Or the docks! It shouldn't be very busy this time of day."

Blake thought it over a bit. She had to admit that the idea was appealing. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd just sat down to enjoy a sunrise. In fact, had she ever even done that? Regardless, it did seem like a nice way to properly wake up.

"Okay," she said softly.

Sun stood from the bed, now successfully half-dressed. He turned toward her.

"Unless you're too tired-" he began, his voice teasing.

"No, no, I'm coming." she cut him off, smiling as she got up and put on bathrobe, her smile widening as she and Sun headed outside.

It only took them a few minutes to reach the docks. By that time, the sun was a shining disk of burning gold on the faint orange line dividing sea and sky, just starting to creep into view.

"Yes!" Sun beamed, his blue eyes practically glittering with joy. "We got here at the perfect time!"

"You make it sound like you've done this before." Blake remarked.

She couldn't seem to stop smiling. Her boyfriend's enthusiasm seemed to be all the more contagious in the morning.

"Actually, I have. No really, I do this all the time!" he insisted when her eyes widened in surprise.

"You watch sunrises whenever you wake up?" asked Blake as they sat on the dock, their feet dangling over the still water beneath them.

Sun shrugged.

"Pretty much. Whenever I can at least." he leaned back on his hands a little as he started to explain, "See, I'm a pretty early riser,"

"So I've noticed." Blake pointed out with a raised eyebrow.

Sun raised his own eyebrow in a way that asked her not to interrupt. She rested her chin on her hands, her ears swivelled toward him to show she was listening intently.

"Point is," Sun continued, "there are lots of days I just happened to get up before the sun did. So, I'd find the nearest window that faces east and watch it come up. My mom used to joke that that's how she and my dad came up with my name."

He hesitated then, pondering for a bit with a doubtful expression.

"At least, I think it was a joke." he said, though his tone made it clear how unsure he was.

Blake chuckled, then, as they fell into companionable silence, looked back at the celestial light they were facing. It had risen higher, becoming a glorious ball of blinding light on red horizon. The sky around glowed orange before fading to a bright blue that signalled a beautiful day ahead. She noticed the colours: the red horizon reminding her of Sun's Ruyi and Jingu Bang, the bright blue just like his eyes, and of course the golden yellow of his hair and aura. She looked up at Sun, her Sun, who was still watching as the sky put his colours on display, and smiled lovingly at him.

"I think they made the perfect choice." she said, her voice warm and tender.

Sun turned toward her, surprised at her tone and, when he saw her, taken aback by the sheer amount of affection in her gaze. It actually made him blush, his tan cheeks going rosy.

"What makes you say that?" he asked.

Blake scooted close to him.

"Well, just like that sun…" she pointed towards it in the distance, then let her hand fall to rest against his. "You light up my life."

Sun's face was bright, and a big goofy smile split his face at her words.

"I love you so much." he said, his voice as bright and happy as his smile.

Blake laughed lightly, her own cheeks pinkening.

"I know." she chuckled.

"No, really." he said more seriously.

He gazed at her with adoring eyes.

"I love you, Blake." he murmured.

Blake leaned into him, her hand reaching up to his face.

"I love you too," she stroked his cheek, then added in a whisper: "my sunrise."

Sun dipped his head so that their faces met and their lips could brush against each other and the two faunus kissed sweetly as the sun completed its ascent into the sky.


	2. Day 3: Parkour

Across the rooftops of Vale, four figures raced along, leaping and running from building to building. At the head of the pack was a tall, muscular man with spiky, brilliant blond hair, electric blue eyes and skin so tanned it seemed he had spent his entire life with nothing but air between himself and the sun. He moved on the tops of the urban jungle with by far the most speed and agility of the group and with the ease and confidence of many years' experience. Actually, his pace now was almost leisurely compared to his normal one. He was keeping it slow for the sake of the three who were trying to keep up with him. In that department, they were failing. They were falling behind so much that at one point, the man found himself running alone on one long rooftop. The briefest glance over his shoulder revealed that they were still following him, but there was a sizeable gap between them. He reached the end of the roof and leapt over to the other, landing in a perfect crouch. He straightened up and watched as the three girls closed the distance between them while his long prehensile tail, its fur the same golden hue as his hair, waved about slowly behind him. The first to join him on his rooftop also had a tail, though it was far thicker and bushier than his. It was covered in brownish-grey fur rather than bright gold. The girl had straight, shoulder-length black hair was black in colour and bright yellow eyes. As she jumped, she stuck her tail out behind her, much like the man had, and it helped her steady herself as she landed beside him.

"You're doing great, Marion!" he grinned, leaning down and holding up a hand.

The girl gave it a solid high-five.

"Thanks!" she beamed up at him. "Did you see that jump? I thought for a moment I wasn't gonna make it but I did!"

"You sure did!" the man enthused.

He then saw the second figure approaching. Her hair was also ebony-coloured, but her eyes were blue like his own. As she approached the edge of the roof, she saw the distance between it and the roof on which he and Marion stood. The sight made the black-furred wolf ears on her head flatten in fear.

"Don't stop, Shae!" the man called out. "Just keep going! I'll catch you!"

He held his arms out to her. Shae swallowed her fear and ran even faster. She jumped off the edge and cleared the space between the two rooftops, landing in her father's outstretched arms.

"You okay?" he asked as he brought her safely down beside him

"Yeah, I'm fine." she said, panting.

"You sure?"

She nodded. Marion beamed at her sister.

"I knew you could make it!" she cheered, bringing a smile to Shae's face.

Their father leaned down to ruffle the girl's soft ears. He then turned his attention to the last girl, who had just landed on the neighbouring building. She seemed almost a mini-copy of himself, with the same blue eyes and hair bright as gold. Unlike her siblings, however, instead of a tail, she had yellow fur speckled with large black spots on her shoulders and arms. The markings, covered by her clothing, also ran down her back and legs in a spectacular galaxy of black and yellow. She dashed toward her family, jumping off the rooftop in a spectacular leap! But perhaps she leapt a moment too soon, for she only just made it, her feet barely landing on the edge of the roof. For a moment, she wobbled unsteadily, but Sun Wukong quickly grabbed her outstretched arms and pulled her to safety.

"That was close." he sighed with relief.

"I could've made it." his daughter pouted defensively.

"I'm sure you could've." he knelt down so they were facing each other. "But you're still not going to able to make every jump out there, Ilia, and Daddy's not always going to be there to help you. So, just try to be careful sometimes, okay?"

The girl's blazing pride seemed to cool at her father's concern. She looked into his worried eyes and murmured earnestly:

"I'll try."

She smiled comfortingly, and there was a sparkle of defiance in her eye as she added:

"But no promises!"

Sun beamed at them, pulling them all into a hug.

"Those are my girls!" he cheered, giving them all an affectionate noogie. "Now what do you say we try to make it to THAT building over there?" he said, pointing.

"YES!" came the unanimous answer. "Let's do it!"

"And just what are you four doing?"

All four of them jumped at the voice, then nervously looked down at the street. What they saw was a beautiful woman with long black hair, feline-bright eyes and a pair of black cat ears, now turned back in an obvious sign of annoyance. Sun chuckled nervously as Blake Belladonna stared expectantly up at him.

"Hey honey!" he waved cheerily, smiling with effort.

Blake didn't wave cheerily back, nor did she return the smile. She wouldn't be so easily deterred.

"Answer my question, Sun. What are you doing?"

"Just giving our daughters their first lesson in parkour." Sun answered obediently, scratching his hair in a nervous gesture.

At this, his daughters came to his defense.

"It's super-fun, mom!" piped Marion, to which her sisters agreed.

"Yeah, you should do this last part with us!" said Shae, and Sun nodded enthusiastically.

"Please, mom!" begged Ilia.

Blake's irritated expression faltered as her daughters kept looking at her with huge, supplicating eyes. That, plus her husband's annoyingly adorable smile, was something that, try as she might, she could never resist for long. She rolled her eyes, but couldn't keep from smiling.

"Okay, you win." she watched for a moment as her family rejoiced, then nodded at the structure they'd been talking about before she'd interrupted. "You said to that building?"

"That's the plan!" called Sun, his grin big and bright now that he no longer feared his wife's wrath.

"Alright then." Blake took out gambol shroud and shot it towards the ground beside her, using the momentum to leap onto a tall building and start running across it like a blur.

"W-What?!" gawked Sun, then he started shouting after the dashing cat faunus. "Hey! Hey that's cheating! No weapons! Oh! We can't let this stand." he said indignantly. "Come on girls! Let's show your mother what real parkour looks like!"

"Right behind you, dad!" whooped Marion as her father sprinted after Blake, following right behind him, her squirrel tail bushy with excitement.

"Hey, wait for me!" cried Ilia as she and Shae ran to keep up, and the family spent the rest of the afternoon doing parkour all across the city.


	3. Day 4: Free Day

Sun Wukong spent the afternoon doing something very unlike Sun Wukong: cleaning his room. Before you gasp in shock, it really did need tidying up. Discarded clothing was scattered about, the bed was spectacularly unmade and the garbage can was dangerously close to overflowing. Needless to say, Sun hadn't done much cleaning while Blake was here. After all, he wasn't the type to be side-tracked when his girlfriend was present. Now that she wasn't though, with her having left a few hours ago, he could afford to focus on the small matter of personal orderliness, which he went about with relaxed ease. A little disorganization never bothered him.

As the blond boy finished returning the pillows to their rightful place at the head of the bed, he noticed a book lying on floor next to nightstand. Feeling pretty certain that it was one of Blake's, he picked it up. Suddenly, his eyes widened as he recognized the title and cover art. He knew this book. He'd caught one of his sisters reading it back in vacuo (probably the most embarrassing event of his childhood)!

Don't get him wrong, Sun didn't have anything against the book or its contents (although that hadn't stopped him from feeling disgusted when he'd discovered his red-faced sister's possession of it). It was just that he never suspected that Blake might've read this kind of stuff, never thought that she might've enjoyed it enough to procure the book for herself, that she might…like this stuff…that maybe she wanted…to try some of it. A wicked smile spread over his features as a theory began to form in his mind.

'Well, there's only one way to find out.' He thought as he pulled out his scroll.

…

Blake had just finished unpacking when she received the text from sun. Her eyebrows lifted in surprise as she read his message.

'I think you forgot something back at my place. Mind if I come over tonight to return it? '

The cat faunus blushed as she read the last of Sun's text. She was pleasantly surprised at his suggestion, and the implication behind it, and she quickly texted back:

'Maybe not tonight. Still a bit tired after you-know-what'

The response was almost immediate.

'Tomorrow then? While your parents are out?'

She grinned.

'Definitely'

Even though Sun's answer was only words on a screen, she could practically hear the triumph in them.

'Yes! One question though'

Blake blinked, surprised. Curious, sent him a question mark, encouraging him to continue. He answered promptly.

'Can I come in through your window?'

Blake almost did a double-take as she read the text.

'Why?' she asked.

His answer, when he sent it, was quite the eyebrow-raiser.

'It's part of a little surprise I have planned for you '

Blake had a feeling she knew what kind of surprise he had in store. And though she was still perplexed at what it could possibly have to do with him arriving by her window, she was nonetheless intrigued. So, she texted back:

'Okay weirdo. See you tomorrow ^3^'

He sent her a kissing emoji accompanied by several hearts and, for good measure, a cat emoji he'd gotten her permission to use a few days ago. She smiled fondly at it, then turned off the small device, pondering as she did what Sun was planning to do the following night.

…

Sun was actually grateful for the extra day before going to see Blake. It gave him more time to put together his costume. Now, when he first set out to do this, he had to admit he was a little nervous. Where and how was he going to find a ninja outfit, preferably one resembling that of the main character of Blake's illicit book, in less than a day? Surprisingly, the answer came not from a costume store or some searching on the wireless net, but rather from a certain Oscar Pine. Apparently, the farm hand happened to have a ninja outfit exactly like the one being worn by the handsome man on the book cover. Of course, Oscar's outfit was a bit too small for Sun, but the lad's aunt, who was good at sewing, could easily make the necessary adjustments in a few hours and she was happy to help a friend of her nephew's. Naturally, Sun was extremely grateful. But he also had to ask: why did Oscar have that outfit in the first place? Oscar's silence and very red cheeks were all the answer the monkey faunus needed and he didn't press for details. He was, he decided, still going to keep the outfit, but he would be washing it as soon as he got home. Several times. Just in case.

…

Blake had decided to take a bath before Sun came over. No, contrary to popular belief, being a cat faunus did not mean she hated water. She enjoyed taking a nice, hot, relaxing bath now and then, thank you very much. On other evenings, she would've showered, but tonight Sun was coming over, so she felt that such an occasion called for something a bit more special. And besides, she thought as she towel-dried herself, she'd doubtless be needing all her energy for when he showed up, so a little rest while soaking in the tub probably hadn't been a bad idea. After blow-drying her hair (she didn't like towelling her sensitive cat ears) and wrapping herself in a towel, she headed for her room. It was dark by now, almost 9:00, and Blake started to wonder when her boyfriend was going to show up. But just as she entered her bedroom, she heard a knock at the window. That was probably him, she figured, and she went to open it. But as she drew back the curtains, she nearly dropped her towel.

"S-Sun?!" she yelped as he leaped gracefully into her bedroom. "W-Why are you dressed like that?" she asked, noticing his outfit with a blush.

Sun grinned at her, looking perfectly sexy in his dark ninja garb.

"I'm so glad you asked. Because tonight, baby," he gestured to his costume, his eyebrows waggling flirtatiously, "I'm your ninja of love."

At his words, Blake's entire face turned red and even the tips of her ears had a rosy hue. At the same time, she fully recognized his outfit. It was the exact same outfit that she'd imagined him wearing during one of her latest rereads of the book. And as she stared at Sun, it occurred to her that the imaginings had not done the reality before her justice. Then again, perhaps that was it: this was reality, while as that had been mere fantasy.

"Holy shit," she whispered.

"Is it too much?" Sun asked, a hint of nervousness in his voice, as if he'd feared he'd overstepped his bounds.

But his fears were completely unnecessary.

"It's perfect." Blake managed to utter. "But how did you know-?"

"Oh, you forgot your book at my house." Sun explained, cutting the amorous tone and producing the book from the inside of his shirt, then placing the book on her bedside table. "It's the something I came here to return."

All Blake could think to say was:

"Oh,"

If she was being honest, she was a bit distracted by his outfit. The night-dark fabric clung tightly to his frame so that it seemed each of his muscles was deliciously defined. After a long pause, Blake said quietly:

"This is the surprise you meant."

"Yup." Sun smirked, the bravado returning to his voice, along with a lusty undertone. "So, what do you think?" he gestured to himself, obviously enjoying Blake's heated gaze.

He saw with satisfaction how her drifted down, following his movement. She bit her lip, letting her eyes drink in the sight before her, then finally smiled.

"I'm thinking we should re-enact the scene from chapter 6, page 54." she murmured, her blazing eyes flicking up again to his face.

Sun grinned. He knew the book well enough to know exactly what scene she was talking about.

"Oh, you dirty girl!" he mock-scolded, picking her up and carrying her to the bed, discarding her towel as he went and kissing her to muffle her delighted laughter.


	4. Day 5: Jokes

"Yo Sun!" Neptune called. "You ready to get your tail kicked in some volleyball?"

"Minus the tail-kicking part, you bet!" the boy in question leaped up from his seat beside Blake.

Beside Neptune, his golden-haired girlfriend called out:

"Come on Blake!"

"No thanks, Yang." Said Blake, smiling patiently. "I'll just stick to reading." and with that she settled comfortably in her lawn chair under the shade of the beach umbrella.

"Aw, come on! You're not gonna show your man some support?" Yang asked teasingly.

"Hey, it's fine, Yang." Sun interrupted. "If Blake's not feline up to playing, I won't push her to." he grinned like a big idiot as he spoke.

Blake rolled her eyes. A few months ago, she would've set her boyfriend one of her patented glares for that one, but time had made them more and more tolerable.

"Maybe I just don't feel like monkeying around in the sand." she said, smiling pointedly at Sun.

Instead of reacting with mock-offense, Sun's grin became even bigger and brighter.

"Awwww!" he squealed, so delighted there were practically tears of joy in his eyes. "You do love me!"

Yang looked at her best friend as if the cat faunus had just committed a horrible crime.

"That was bad. Even by my standards." she said flatly.

Neptune shook his head pitifully.

"Disgraceful-"

"HEY! Don't you DARE insult my girlfriend's punning skills!" Sun warned.

"Oh yeah? Or what?" the blue-haired boy raised an eyebrow, seemingly uncaring of what wrath his leader might rain down on him.

"Or I'm gonna kick your butt into the ground is what! GAME ON!" and he charged towards Neptune, whose eyes suddenly went wide with terror as he screamed and started running.

The girls watched their boyfriends in amusement as they dashed back and forth across the sand, then Yang turned to Blake, her expression both slightly baffled and mildly impressed.

"I can't believe you just tried to make a terrible monkey joke."

Blake shrugged.

"What can I say?" she said, smiling as she watched Sun wrestle Neptune to the ground, despite the blue-haired boy's cries for mercy. "He's rubbing off on me."


	5. Day 6: Words

Blake and Sun would always remember their daughters' first words. Now, of course, any parent with enough sheer devotion and good memory would remember the first proper word their child uttered, but Blake and Sun were aided in the fact that their daughters' first words were a bit…unusual. In the best possible way, though.

Fittingly enough, the girls learned their first words in order of birth. Thus, Marion, the eldest triplet, was the first to speak something other than baby-babble. It was about the right time for them to start talking, at almost a year of age.

…

Blake set the three in their high chairs, the bright sunlight pouring in as a welcome signal for lunch time.

"Okay, time for lunch. Let's see," she muttered to herself, taking out four tiny pots of baby food.

Each one was just the size of one healthy portion and each one was of a different flavour. Blake knew from bitter experience how difficult her daughters could be when they didn't get the flavour of food they wanted, so she was going to let them choose, just as she and Sun had done for the last few months. Of course, giving in to their kids' like this couldn't last forever, but for the moment, it was far wiser to do that rather than risk having to clean the kitchen for an entire week…again.

"Okay, Shae, sweetie," said Blake, holding the pots before the tiny girl carefully so she could see each one, "which one do you want?"

Shae's wolf ears perked up happily at her mother's words and she reached for green pot, squealing excitedly and practically salivating at the mouth.

"Okay, peas for you." Blake set the pot on Shae's tray and popped it open, then moved towards the next chair. "Ilia? Berry mix like last time?" she asked, smiling knowingly as she held it in front of her.

They'd long recognized that it was her favourite and would always offer it to her when they had it. As always, Ilia nodded vigorously, babbling and cooing until Blake had set her pot before her. Immediately, she plunged her hands into the colourful mash, and it was a miracle none of the stuff ended up in her bright blond hair. Last was Marion, whose squirrel tail was waving impatiently by the time Blake reached her.

"Alright, Marion, what'll it be? Bananas or sweet potatoes?"

The little girl shook her head.

"Banana!"

Blake's ears twitched, and for a moment she just gaped at her daughter, her eyes as big as dinner plates.

"What?" she asked after a pause.

Marion was more than happy to repeat herself.

"Bananananananana!" she shouted, waving her arms.

"Okay okay!" Blake scrambled to open the pot. "Banana it is! Sun! Sun, come here!" she called.

Her husband came running from the other room.

"What is it, honey?" he asked, his concern turning to confusion at the excited, no, exhilarated look on his wife's face.

"She said 'banana'!" Blake cheered.

"What?!" Sun's mouth fell open.

Blake nodded.

"Marion said 'banana'!"

"No way!" beamed the man.

"She did!" insisted Blake. "Come on sweetie, say 'banana'! Marion!"

She was already digging her little hands into the pot and shoving handfuls of yellow food into her mouth. But she looked up as Blake animatedly called her name:

"Marion, can you say 'banana'?"

Then Sun came closer, his eyes shining with excitement.

"Can you say 'banana' for daddy, mariboo?"

Marion blinked her big yellow eyes at him and said simply:

"Banana."

Sun practically started dancing on the spot.

"Oh my dust, Blake I can't believe this!" he cried joyfully. "She said 'banana'-"

"Banana!" Marion crowed, throwing her arms open triumphantly.

Unfortunately, her enthusiastic motion accidentally splattered Sun with banana-coloured baby-food.

"Okay, we're gonna need to work on your table manners." he chastised lightly as Blake fought to contain her snickers.

…

"Dada."

Blake blinked in surprise at her husband's voice piercing the gentle quiet.

"Dada?"

Slowly, she lifted her head and turned to look at him. He'd just finished changing Shae and was gently holding the girl's ankles, lightly tickling her feet and making her giggle at every motion. And every tickled was punctuated by his repeating that word:

"Dada. Dada."

"Sun." Blake said at last.

"Yes, Blake?" he asked, not removing his intent gaze from the task of making Shae laugh.

"Please tell me that you're not saying 'dada' over and over in hopes that Shae will say it back to you." his wife begged.

"Hey, that's how you got Marion to say 'banana'." he answered, glancing over at her.

Blake raised a highly skeptical eyebrow.

"I only said it once." she deadpanned.

"So it should definitely work this time!" Sun said, as though this were a perfectly reasonable explanation. "Isn't that right shaebaby?" he cooed at the girl, releasing her legs and tickling her tummy instead. "You can 'dada' right?"

Shae squealed and shrieked with glee, but she did not say "dada". Blake sighed.

"You can't pressure her into this, Sun. Besides," she strode over and picked up the girl, rescuing her from her father's tickling, "what if she wants to say 'mama' first?" she asked innocently.

Sun gasped.

"Oooooh! Now I see how it is!" he pointed an accusing finger at Blake. "You want to be responsible for their first words!"

"I don't know what you're talking about." Blake told him, then she whispered conspiratorially to Shae, "Don't listen to daddy, sweetie. He's just being silly. Not like mama."

"Ah!" exclaimed Sun. "I thought you said we couldn't pressure her into saying her first word!"

Blake shot him a look.

"At least I didn't-"

"Ma…!"

Both parents went silent and looked down at her. Shae screwed up her face, as though she were undertaking a great challenge. At long last, she uttered:

"Mmmm-Mada!"

Blake and Sun stared.

"Did she just say what I think she said?" asked Blake.

Shae's blue eyes shone proudly and, more confidently, she piped:

"Mada!"

"I think she did!" Sun's face broke into a huge smile. "She doesn't us to fight about what her first word will be, so instead of saying 'mama' or 'dada' she said 'mada'!"

"Does that even count as a word?" asked Blake.

"Does it matter?!" Sun beamed.

Blake looked at Shae. The tiny girl seemed to be grinning at her.

"Ma! Da!" she squeaked.

It was all it took for Blake to cave.

"No, it doesn't!" she squealed, smothering Shae in kisses as Sun hugged them both.

…

"You and your sisters are the cutest girls in all of Remnant, did you know that?" Sun asked his youngest daughter.

After a moment, he answered his own question:

"Yes, you did." he cooed, picking her up.

They were in the living room, sitting in the middle of the carpet with toys scattered about them, a little worn out from constant playing. Shae was already napping on the couch nearby while Marion had been taken to the bathroom to be changed. So, Sun was left with Ilia, who seemed not quite tired enough for a nap, but certainly enough to do anything but let her daddy cuddle her. Sun brought the tiny girl up to his face and nuzzled her, earning a twinkling little giggle.

"You girls are just absolutely adorable." he said, then asked. "Can you say 'adorable'? Probably not," he figured, "but I know I can, because that's what you are." he nuzzled her again.

As he stopped, Ilia looked at him and, in a tiny voice, said:

"Adobibble."

For several long seconds, Sun sat completely frozen in slack-jawed, bug-eyed shock. Then, with tears of joy filling his eyes he shouted:

"BLAKE! WE LITERALLY HAVE THE CUTEST DAUGHTER IN ALL OF REMANT!"

Blake, having rushed downstairs, stared at Ilia, who happily waggled her arms and let out a loud:

"Adobbblllttt!"

The woman blinked confusedly at this, as cute as it was, then looked at her husband, who was sniffling amid his squeals of joy.

"I'll take your word for it." she said.


End file.
